The following is a review of insect control for greenhouses including insecticide products registered for different insect pests in greenhouses.
Greenhouse Insect Control
Starting clean
Do not carry-over insects from one crop to another. Keep thrips numbers down to less than 10 per card per week in the fall and winter on poinsettias and Dracaena. Avoid keeping houseplants or allowing weeds to grow in the greenhouse. When each batch of media arrives for a new crop, check it for fungus gnats by filling a one-gallon ziplock bag half-full with moist soil. If fungus gnat adults emerge within two weeks, consider applying a fungus gnat treatment at planting time. Check incoming plant material carefully. If insects are found, treat them with an appropriate product (listed below) to start with as clean a crop as possible.
Scouting
Monitor thrips and whiteflies with yellow sticky cards. Change cards once per week. Use at least one card per house or one per 2,000 square feet. Check the first plants to flower for thrips. For spider mites and aphids, check susceptible plants like marigolds (mites) and pepper s(aphids), weekly. Potato wedges can be stuck in soil and checked 24 hours later for fungus gnat larvae.
Systemic insecticides
Use Marathon, Tristar, Flagship, Safari, or Aria in poinsettia pots, lily pots, or in hanging baskets prone to problems with whiteflies, aphids, mealybugs or soft scales. Note: Aria does not work on silverleaf whitefly. Tristar and Safari also suppress thrips.
Preventing outbreaks
If yellow sticky cards or scouting indicates an increase in aphids, mites, thrips, fungus gnats or whiteflies, apply the following materials once per week until populations decrease to acceptable levels.
Control Products:
Thrips: Avid, Mesurol, Orthene 97, Pylon, Safari, Sanmite, Tristar, and Conserve. Note: Some thrips populations may be resistant to Conserve.
Aphids: Aria, Azatin, BotaniGard, Celero, Decathlon, Discus, Distance, Endeavor, Enstar II, Flagship, Marathon, Ornazin, Orthene 97, Precision, Safari, Talstar, Tristar
Whiteflies: Azatin, BotaniGard, Celero, Decathlon, Distance, Endeavor, Enstar, Flagship, Marathon, Ornazin, Orthene 97, Precision, Safari, Sanmite, Talus, Judo, Tame, Tristar (Note: many populations of silverleaf whitefly are resistant to Marathon, and some may also be resistant to Flagship, Tristar, Safari, Distance and Talus)
Mites: Akari, Avid, Floramite, Hexygon, Judo, Ovation, ProMite, Pylon, Sanmite, Shuttle, Tetrasan.
Broad mites: Avid, Akari, Judo, Pylon, SanMite.
Fungus gnats: Azatin XL, Adept (not on poinsettias), Distance, Marathon, and (drenches) (perhaps other nicotinoids; not yet tested), Mesurol.
Mealybugs: Aria, Celero, Flagship, Orthene, Safari, Talus and Tristar.
New products
Sucrashield isfrom Natural Forces for controlling aphids, mites, thrips, whiteflies and caterpillars on vegetables, herbs and spices in the greenhouse and outdoors. It is also for use on ornamentals, flowers and bedding plants.
This new product is based on a tobacco plant extract and is available now. The active ingredients, sucrose octanoate esters , have an LD50 of 750 to 1500 ppm for whiteflies, and the label rate is 104 oz per 100 gallons (compared with 4 to 8 oz per 100 gallons for most products). This product is similar to some soap or oil products because it is classified by EPA as non-toxic to people, but requires an application rate of 0.8 to 1.0 percent every 7 to 10 days. Sucrashield bears a WARNING on the label because of eye sensitivity. There is no information on the label about phytotoxicity, so caution is recommended until you have tested it yourself, or until phytotoxicity test data is available.
This product will give herb growers another tool to add to the short list of products labeled for use on herbs.
Kontos is from OHP for controlling mites, whiteflies, aphids, and mealybugs. Kontos can be used in the greenhouse, nursery, and interiorscapes on ornamentals and vegetables.
The active ingredient in Kontos is spirotetramat, a tetramic acid derivative similar to Judo. This is a relatively safe product for humans and pets with a CAUTION on the label. Kontos has good activity on spider mites and whiteflies, including highly resistant whiteflies, like the “Q” biotype. Kontos is expected to be available in spring 2009.
Reprinted from "Greenhouse insect management" by David Smitley, Michigan State University Entomology in the MSU Greenhouse Alert Newsletter (1/09) http://www.ipm.msu.edu/grnhouse09/G01-01-09.htm#2
Showing posts with label greenhouse insects. Show all posts
Showing posts with label greenhouse insects. Show all posts
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Greenhouse - Check Your Incoming Plants for Insects and Mites
Greenhouse growers should check all incoming plugs, cuttings, and prefinished plants for insects and mites. The following is an article on the subject from Michigan State University.
Greenhouse growers are already reporting insect activity. We have already seen warm weather insects like two-spotted spider mites on ivy geranium and Lamium cuttings. Inspect all incoming plant products for hitchhikers that you did not pay for but may be getting when your cuttings come in. Look on the underside of leaves with a 16-20x hand lens for mites, or tap cuttings as you open the box over a white sheet of paper and look for the tiny, yellowish-red specks moving on the paper. Check incoming ivy geraniums and spikes also for thrips as low numbers have been seen both on leaves and on sticky cards. Are cards up in your houses that have product in them? Do not ignore the spikes as they are a magnet for thrips and even spider mites this time of the year.
If you have any tropicals or herbs that you are bringing in like Lantana, lavender and rosemary, pay attention for white flies as we have seen some come along with cuttings from southern growing areas. There is a good chance that they are Q-biotype silver leaf whiteflies which are resistant to some insecticides. Click here for management strategies for Q-biotype if it has been confirmed in your greenhouse. Be sure to isolate your pest problems now and control them before moving them to other houses as the season goes on.If you’re not sure of the insect or plant problem, be sure to get it identified correctly before applying a pesticide. I still see growers putting on products that do not work for the pest they are dealing with. Especially in today’s economic times, indentify first then treat. If you’re not sure of the problem, contact your local Extension educator and we will be happy to come out and help you.
Adapted from "Check incoming cuttings for bugs" in the most recent issue of the Michigan State Greenhouse Alert Newsletter by Thomas Dudek, District Extension Horticulture and Marketing Educator, Michigan State University http://www.ipm.msu.edu/grnhouse09/G01-01-09.htm#3
Greenhouse growers are already reporting insect activity. We have already seen warm weather insects like two-spotted spider mites on ivy geranium and Lamium cuttings. Inspect all incoming plant products for hitchhikers that you did not pay for but may be getting when your cuttings come in. Look on the underside of leaves with a 16-20x hand lens for mites, or tap cuttings as you open the box over a white sheet of paper and look for the tiny, yellowish-red specks moving on the paper. Check incoming ivy geraniums and spikes also for thrips as low numbers have been seen both on leaves and on sticky cards. Are cards up in your houses that have product in them? Do not ignore the spikes as they are a magnet for thrips and even spider mites this time of the year.
If you have any tropicals or herbs that you are bringing in like Lantana, lavender and rosemary, pay attention for white flies as we have seen some come along with cuttings from southern growing areas. There is a good chance that they are Q-biotype silver leaf whiteflies which are resistant to some insecticides. Click here for management strategies for Q-biotype if it has been confirmed in your greenhouse. Be sure to isolate your pest problems now and control them before moving them to other houses as the season goes on.If you’re not sure of the insect or plant problem, be sure to get it identified correctly before applying a pesticide. I still see growers putting on products that do not work for the pest they are dealing with. Especially in today’s economic times, indentify first then treat. If you’re not sure of the problem, contact your local Extension educator and we will be happy to come out and help you.
Adapted from "Check incoming cuttings for bugs" in the most recent issue of the Michigan State Greenhouse Alert Newsletter by Thomas Dudek, District Extension Horticulture and Marketing Educator, Michigan State University http://www.ipm.msu.edu/grnhouse09/G01-01-09.htm#3
Monday, October 6, 2008
Greenhouse - Biological Control of Fungus Gnats
The following is information on the biological control of fungus gnats in the greenhouse.
Insect parasitic nematodes (Steinernema feltiae) are primarily used against fungus gnat larvae and thrips pupae in the growing media. The nematodes enter the insect host through body openings. They multiply within the host and release a symbiotic bacterium whose toxin kills the fungus gnat larvae. The larvae may be killed in 1 to 2 days by blood poisoning.
Preventative soil drenches to moist growing media work best. Like any biological control agent, they are best used preventatively before an outbreak occurs. Because the nematodes are living organisms, check for viability before application (which can vary depending upon shipment and company). Place a small amount of the product in a small container, add 1 to 2 drops of room temperature water, wait a few minutes and look for actively moving nematodes. (A dark background helps.) Treat as soon as possible after sticking cuttings, planting seeds or plugs. Optimum media temperatures are between 60 and 70°F. Apply in the evening or at dusk or on a cloudy, overcast day (Nematodes are very sensitive to UV light and desiccation). They are compatible with a number of different pesticides (consult with your supplier for more information or see web sites below). Repeated applications are often needed. The symbiotic bacteria break down the insect cuticle so the larvae may rapidly disappear. Infected fungus gnat larvae are often opaque-white to light yellow in color.
Native, soil dwelling predatory mites (sold under the name of Hypoaspis miles) feed upon small, first instar fungus gnat larvae as well as thrips pupae. If soil dwelling prey insects are scarce, this predatory mite can survive by scavenging upon plant debris and algae. Hypoaspis are best used preventatively, at planting time. Apply to moist media, with media temperatures of at least 60°F. To evaluate quality before release, place a small sample of mites on a sheet of white paper. The Hypoaspis mites are tan and move quickly. Food source mites are translucent, white and move slowly.
Rove beetles are generalist predators that may feed upon shore flies, as well as fungus gnats and thrips. Both adults and larvae are generally found in the growing media, hiding in cracks and crevices. Once established in a greenhouse, they will be there year round, but population levels vary depending upon prey populations.
Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. israelensis (Gnatrol) is most effective against the young first instar larvae. The younger instars do not have to consume as much material for it to be effective. Because larger instars are less susceptible, repeated applications at high rates may be needed to provide effective control.
Information from Leanne Pundt, University of Connecticut Cooperative Extension, in the October, 2007 edition of the New England Greenhouse Update.
Insect parasitic nematodes (Steinernema feltiae) are primarily used against fungus gnat larvae and thrips pupae in the growing media. The nematodes enter the insect host through body openings. They multiply within the host and release a symbiotic bacterium whose toxin kills the fungus gnat larvae. The larvae may be killed in 1 to 2 days by blood poisoning.
Preventative soil drenches to moist growing media work best. Like any biological control agent, they are best used preventatively before an outbreak occurs. Because the nematodes are living organisms, check for viability before application (which can vary depending upon shipment and company). Place a small amount of the product in a small container, add 1 to 2 drops of room temperature water, wait a few minutes and look for actively moving nematodes. (A dark background helps.) Treat as soon as possible after sticking cuttings, planting seeds or plugs. Optimum media temperatures are between 60 and 70°F. Apply in the evening or at dusk or on a cloudy, overcast day (Nematodes are very sensitive to UV light and desiccation). They are compatible with a number of different pesticides (consult with your supplier for more information or see web sites below). Repeated applications are often needed. The symbiotic bacteria break down the insect cuticle so the larvae may rapidly disappear. Infected fungus gnat larvae are often opaque-white to light yellow in color.
Native, soil dwelling predatory mites (sold under the name of Hypoaspis miles) feed upon small, first instar fungus gnat larvae as well as thrips pupae. If soil dwelling prey insects are scarce, this predatory mite can survive by scavenging upon plant debris and algae. Hypoaspis are best used preventatively, at planting time. Apply to moist media, with media temperatures of at least 60°F. To evaluate quality before release, place a small sample of mites on a sheet of white paper. The Hypoaspis mites are tan and move quickly. Food source mites are translucent, white and move slowly.
Rove beetles are generalist predators that may feed upon shore flies, as well as fungus gnats and thrips. Both adults and larvae are generally found in the growing media, hiding in cracks and crevices. Once established in a greenhouse, they will be there year round, but population levels vary depending upon prey populations.
Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. israelensis (Gnatrol) is most effective against the young first instar larvae. The younger instars do not have to consume as much material for it to be effective. Because larger instars are less susceptible, repeated applications at high rates may be needed to provide effective control.
Information from Leanne Pundt, University of Connecticut Cooperative Extension, in the October, 2007 edition of the New England Greenhouse Update.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Greenhouse - Managing Greenhouse Insects
The following is a good summary on insect management in greenhouses from Michigan State University.
Do not carry-over insects from one crop to another. Keep thrips numbers down to less than 10 per card per week in the fall and winter on poinsettias and Dracaena. Avoid keeping houseplants or allowing weeds to grow in the greenhouse. When each batch of media arrives for a new crop, check it for fungus gnats by filling a one gallon zip-lock bag half-full with moist soil. If fungus gnat adults emerge within two weeks, consider applying a fungus gnat treatment at planting time. Check incoming plant material carefully. If insects are found, treat them with an appropriate product listed below to start with as clean a crop as possible.
Scouting
Monitor thrips and whiteflies with yellow sticky cards. Change cards once per week. Use at least one card per house or one per 2,000 square feet. Check the first plants to flower for thrips. For spider mites and aphids, check susceptible plants like marigold (mites) and pepper (aphids), weekly. Potato wedges can be stuck in soil and checked 24 hours later for fungus gnat larvae.
Systemic insecticides
Use Marathon, Tristar, Flagship, Safari, or Aria in poinsettia pots, lily pots, or in hanging baskets prone to problems with whiteflies, aphids, mealybugs or soft scales. Note: Aria does not work on silverleaf whitefly. Tristar and Safari also suppress thrips.
Preventing outbreaks
If yellow sticky cards or scouting indicates an increase in aphids, mites, thrips, fungus gnats or whiteflies, apply the following materials once per week until populations decrease to acceptable levels.
Thrips: Avid, Mesurol, Orthene 97, Safari, Sanmite, Tristar, and Conserve. (Note: some thrips populations may be resistant to Conserve.)
Aphids: Aria, Azatin, BotaniGard, Celero, Decathlon, Discus, Distance, Endeavor, Enstar II, Flagship, Marathon, Ornazin, Orthene 97, Precision, Safari, Talstar, Tristar.
Whiteflies: Azatin, BotaniGard, Celero, Decathlon, Distance, Endeavor, Enstar, Flagship, Marathon, Ornazin, Orthene 97, Precision, Safari, Sanmite, Talus, Judo, Tame, Tristar (Note: many populations of silverleaf whitefly are resistant to Marathon, and some may also be resistant to Flagship, Tristar, Safari, Distance and Talus.)
Mites: Akari, Avid, Floramite, Hexygon, Judo, Ovation, ProMite, Pylon, Sanmite, Shuttle, Tetrasan.
Broad mites: Avid, Akari, Judo, Pylon, SanMite.
Fungus gnats: Azatin XL, Adept (not on poinsettias), Distance, Marathon, and (drenches) (perhaps other nicotinoids; not yet tested), Mesurol.
Mealybugs: Aria, Celero, Flagship, Orthene, Safari, Talus and Tristar.
Reprinted from "Managing greenhouse insects: by David Smitley, Entomology in the December 21 edition of the Greenhouse Alert Newsletter from Michigan State University.
Do not carry-over insects from one crop to another. Keep thrips numbers down to less than 10 per card per week in the fall and winter on poinsettias and Dracaena. Avoid keeping houseplants or allowing weeds to grow in the greenhouse. When each batch of media arrives for a new crop, check it for fungus gnats by filling a one gallon zip-lock bag half-full with moist soil. If fungus gnat adults emerge within two weeks, consider applying a fungus gnat treatment at planting time. Check incoming plant material carefully. If insects are found, treat them with an appropriate product listed below to start with as clean a crop as possible.
Scouting
Monitor thrips and whiteflies with yellow sticky cards. Change cards once per week. Use at least one card per house or one per 2,000 square feet. Check the first plants to flower for thrips. For spider mites and aphids, check susceptible plants like marigold (mites) and pepper (aphids), weekly. Potato wedges can be stuck in soil and checked 24 hours later for fungus gnat larvae.
Systemic insecticides
Use Marathon, Tristar, Flagship, Safari, or Aria in poinsettia pots, lily pots, or in hanging baskets prone to problems with whiteflies, aphids, mealybugs or soft scales. Note: Aria does not work on silverleaf whitefly. Tristar and Safari also suppress thrips.
Preventing outbreaks
If yellow sticky cards or scouting indicates an increase in aphids, mites, thrips, fungus gnats or whiteflies, apply the following materials once per week until populations decrease to acceptable levels.
Thrips: Avid, Mesurol, Orthene 97, Safari, Sanmite, Tristar, and Conserve. (Note: some thrips populations may be resistant to Conserve.)
Aphids: Aria, Azatin, BotaniGard, Celero, Decathlon, Discus, Distance, Endeavor, Enstar II, Flagship, Marathon, Ornazin, Orthene 97, Precision, Safari, Talstar, Tristar.
Whiteflies: Azatin, BotaniGard, Celero, Decathlon, Distance, Endeavor, Enstar, Flagship, Marathon, Ornazin, Orthene 97, Precision, Safari, Sanmite, Talus, Judo, Tame, Tristar (Note: many populations of silverleaf whitefly are resistant to Marathon, and some may also be resistant to Flagship, Tristar, Safari, Distance and Talus.)
Mites: Akari, Avid, Floramite, Hexygon, Judo, Ovation, ProMite, Pylon, Sanmite, Shuttle, Tetrasan.
Broad mites: Avid, Akari, Judo, Pylon, SanMite.
Fungus gnats: Azatin XL, Adept (not on poinsettias), Distance, Marathon, and (drenches) (perhaps other nicotinoids; not yet tested), Mesurol.
Mealybugs: Aria, Celero, Flagship, Orthene, Safari, Talus and Tristar.
Reprinted from "Managing greenhouse insects: by David Smitley, Entomology in the December 21 edition of the Greenhouse Alert Newsletter from Michigan State University.
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